P-63: Achieving consensus for diabetes care at school - national minimum standards
C Gelder, R Martin, J SummertonAbstract
Introduction
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN 2024) guidance on managing medical needs in schools, aligned with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) principles of delegation, emphasises competency assessment, documentation and auditability. Clinical Nurse Specialists across Children and Young People (CYP) diabetes networks raised concerns regarding the impact on delivery and sustainability of school staff training, within a wider context of national scrutiny and variation in practice.
Objectives
To benchmark current CYP diabetes training provision across England and Wales against evidence-based guidance, and to develop nationally agreed minimum standards to strengthen delegation, improve consistency, and reduce variation.
Methods
A collaborative, consensus-based methodology was adopted, led by three national co-lead nurses working in partnership with ten regional lead nurses from the CYP diabetes network. A number of core themes were identified as essential components of safe and effective training delivery including supervised practice, scenario-based competency assessment (e.g. hypoglycaemia, hyperglycaemia, pump failure), completion of accredited e-learning, incident reporting, evaluation, individual healthcare plans. A robust audit trail of training and competency was emphasised. Template resources were developed and disseminated via the lead nurses back through the diabetes networks.
Results
National consensus on minimum standards was achieved and endorsed by key stakeholders, including NHS England and the RCN CYP Diabetes Network. Standardised templates supported competency assessment, evaluation, and scenario-based learning across educational settings, reducing duplication and variation.
Conclusions
A collaborative national approach enabled rapid development and implementation of standardised training aligned to RCN and NMC guidance. This strengthens delegation, reduces variation, and supports safer, high-quality care for CYP with diabetes in school settings.